Chapter 1827: Future Reunion

The Dao Spear flexed, then violently sprang back, launching Heavenly Capital City soaring into the air with a roar!

This ruin was shrouded in primordial chaos, heavy and vast, yet even such a sacred place could not withstand the astonishing power of Gongzi Lingxiao.

Qin Mu stomped his foot heavily. The ruins of Heavenly Capital City, which had been flying towards the Obelisk Forest, instantly tilted, one end sinking and the other rising, resembling a leaf drifting in the wind within the Void Midden.

Gongzi Lingxiao, seething with killing intent, descended into Heavenly Capital City.

Although he had just recovered his physical body, Qin Mu was also in a difficult situation. The Dao injuries inflicted by Fourth Master Zixiao on Qin Mu could not be healed in a short time.

The moment his Dao Spear was unleashed, it became his most ferocious killing move, a forest of spears, like a grand prison!

Gongzi Lingxiao abhorred evil. The exotic treasure he left in Jade Capital City was the Grand Prison, used to suppress and refine enemies who opposed Miluo Palace.

He was not as benevolent as First Master Taishang. Taishang would not kill his opponents; even when facing a "great evil" like Taiyi, Taishang would only suppress him within the Dao Burial Divine Coffin.

Gongzi Lingxiao's Grand Prison was filled with a dense forest of Dao Spears. This spear-forest would pierce the prisoners' physical bodies and their primordial spirits, tormenting them endlessly until they succumbed to death.

From his Grand Prison, one could also discern the domineering and brutal nature of his cultivation techniques and divine abilities.

The divine ability contained within his Dao Spear was the most formidable. The moment the spear was unleashed, countless divine beings would appear, gathering around his Dao Spear, causing his combat power to surge!

Qin Mu retreated as countless spear shadows whizzed past him. Gongzi Lingxiao's momentum grew stronger and stronger, rapidly closing in. His spear strikes were like dragons, ever-changing, and the voices of gods and devils resonated from all directions, bolstering his power and making his Dao Spear even more terrifying!

The ruins of Heavenly Capital City exploded into pieces under the might of the Dao Spear, transforming into primordial chaos.

The primordial chaos within these ruins grew denser, with rolling waves of it surging from the depths of space-time. Within the chaotic mist, tall and strange figures seemed to stand, shadowy and indistinct.

Gongzi Lingxiao ignored them, his spear tip never straying from Qin Mu as he pressed deeper into the ruins.

Suddenly, Qin Mu's movements halted. His feet, perfectly balanced in a wide stance, landed precisely within the footprints at the center of the Creation Altar.

Gongzi Lingxiao's heart skipped a beat: "The Heavenly Capital's Creation Ground!"

Knowing things were amiss, he immediately channeled all his power to unleash a final strike, simultaneously letting go of his Dao Spear and retreating.

At that very moment, Qin Mu reached out and drew his sword; a brilliant sword light flared.

The Heavenly Capital Creation Chapter!

Chaos parted, and a new universe was born within the sword light. Wherever the sword light passed, the tall and strange figures in the chaotic mist dispersed like smoke.

"Third Senior Brother," Qin Mu's voice boomed, "this is the Creation Calamity of the universe's beginning that you avoided. Now, I return it to you!"

Qin Mu's Dao voice roared as his sword light met Gongzi Lingxiao's thrusting Dao Spear. The gods and devils swirling and chanting around the spear shattered into pieces!

*Crack!* The Dao Spear was severed, shattered, and expanded into pure energy, then underwent the transformations of the Primordial Five Tais within the light of creation!

Gongzi Lingxiao's retreat was extremely fast, but the universe's expansion was even faster, swiftly catching up to him, engulfing and submerging him!

Within that light of creation, Gongzi Lingxiao recalled his escape during the Creation Calamity of the Seventeenth Epoch. Countless versions of himself desperately launched their strongest strikes, breaking through incredibly strange spaces and surging towards the Void Midden.

At that time, countless versions of him perished in the Creation Calamity, but only he broke through its calamitous light. His physical body shattered in the light, his Dao Spear tumbled, and his head plunged into the Void Midden.

He did not know when the 'self' who broke through the Creation Calamity was from, nor when the 'selves' who were destroyed were from.

Back then, he looked back and saw the calamitous light of the Creation Calamity left far behind him.

Now, looking back within the calamitous light of Qin Mu's Heavenly Capital Creation Chapter, he saw that the Creation Calamity's light was still pursuing him, having chased him for 9.5 billion years.

At this moment, the calamitous light was almost upon him!

He had never truly escaped the Creation Calamity's light; he had merely fled far enough that it hadn't caught up to him yet.

But now, the Creation Calamity had finally caught up.

The difference was that this time, the Creation Calamity, through Qin Mu's hands, would devour him, drown him, and erase him!

It seemed that everyone in this Void Midden had never truly escaped the Creation Calamity; they simply hadn't been caught by it yet. Once the hidden powerhouses here were caught by their respective Creation Calamities, they too would be unable to escape death.

"This defeat is not mine; it is the will of Heaven!"

Gongzi Lingxiao could not resist the calamitous light. His physical body disintegrated within it, yet he channeled his last remaining strength, crashing into the ruins of Heavenly Capital City, using his final power to propel the ruins towards the Obelisk Forest!

He had to buy time for the Hall Masters and enlightened beings of Miluo Palace!

To secure the hope of Jade Capital City's continuation!

He could die, but the ideals of Miluo Palace had to be preserved and passed on!

Even if the merit isn't mine, even if I perish and my Dao fades away!

*Whoosh—*

The ruins of Heavenly Capital City hurtled towards the Obelisk Forest at an even faster speed, drawing ever closer. Within the calamitous light, Gongzi Lingxiao saw that the ruins of Heavenly Capital City and the Obelisk Forest were now almost touching!

His physical body and his Great Dao had almost completely dissipated, and his thoughts and consciousness also faded within the calamitous light. Only his head remained, and the flesh on it rapidly disintegrated.

Soon, even his skull decomposed in the calamitous light, yet he felt a hint of solace.

"With the Creation Beings released, the enlightened beings of Miluo Palace will have a chance to survive. This is the last thing I can do. Someone will always pick up the ideals of Miluo Palace, pick up my thoughts and carry them forward for me..."

His consciousness extinguished. In the instant before annihilation, he saw Qin Mu placing himself between the ruins of Heavenly Capital City and the Obelisk Forest!

He saw Qin Mu's hair stand on end, countless arms flailing, blocking both the ruins of Heavenly Capital City and the Obelisk Forest, using his own body to withstand the impact of these two sacred places!

He saw Qin Mu's arms explode one after another under the crushing force of immense power, flesh and blood splattering. He saw Qin Mu being squeezed until he vomited blood, but then he also saw Qin Mu continuously growing new arms, desperately holding back the two sacred places!

Finally, the ruins of Heavenly Capital City trembled slightly and came to a halt, while the Obelisk Forest was pushed away by Qin Mu's strength, moving farther and farther from the ruins of Heavenly Capital City.

"You bastard Old Seven..."

Gongzi Lingxiao's consciousness flickered one last time before being completely extinguished.

Qin Mu lay sprawled before the entrance of the Obelisk Forest, spitting out mouthfuls of blood. Everything before his three eyes was pitch black, and he couldn't see anything for a long time.

The Great Dao he had cultivated was almost completely shattered under the immense pressure, and his physical body was in a terrible state, covered in wounds with broken bone fragments piercing through his skin.

After a long while, he felt something flow into his mouth, down his throat, and throughout his physical body and primordial spirit, nourishing his injured form.

His injuries improved slightly. A cool liquid dripped into his eyes, and after another moment, his vision slowly returned, the hazy surroundings gradually becoming clear.

Qin Mu saw a few figures, and then a moment later, those figures coalesced into a single unassuming old man sitting by the doorframe of the Obelisk Forest.

Qin Mu struggled to sit up and greeted the old man: "Senior Brother Taishang."

First Master Taishang waved his hand and said, "Lingxiao is dead, and Zixiao's Dao heart is shattered. Miluo Palace no longer has its backbone. Old Seven, your goal has been achieved. Next, are you going to Jade Capital City to eliminate all the enlightened beings and Hall Masters?"

Qin Mu sat down beside him, resting his elbows on his knees, breathing heavily, his hands still trembling.

"Senior Brother, life is both stronger and more fragile than we imagine."

Qin Mu smiled faintly, then chuckled, "3.5 billion years, just 3.5 billion years, and the reforms of Yankang have already reached their limit. We, the enlightened beings of Yankang, have been fighting tooth and nail in the Ancestral Court, leaving Yankang with no worries, no further motivation for progress. Yankang has no rivals left. I once hated Emperor Kaihuang Qin Ye's establishment of Carefree Village, but we, the enlightened beings, are turning Yankang into another Carefree Village, an even larger one!"

He painfully stretched his waist, his spine crackling. "And this universe is still growing, becoming larger and vaster, with the myriad heavens drifting apart and stars moving further away from each other. This is a calamity far more terrifying than the Calamity of Destruction or the Calamity of Creation. Yankang will slowly be killed within its 'gentle village.' By the time they realize the danger, they will be unable to stop this universe from turning into a void. I believe they need enemies to warn them, to make them continue their reforms and grow stronger."

Taishang glanced at him and said, "So you will spare the enlightened beings and Hall Masters of Miluo Palace, to inspire and push them forward."

Qin Mu's expression was calm. "I need to leave another possibility for the future. Perhaps Teacher's philosophy is correct?"

His gaze was deep. "I also didn't kill Old Man Wuya, nor did I kill Second Sister Wuji. In case the entire universe grows indefinitely, they might have a way to stop the trend of voidification."

Taishang looked at him and suddenly asked, "Are you going back?"

Qin Mu nodded, a smile on his face. "I'm going back to see Teacher, to become the Seventh Master of Miluo Palace, and to find my daughter. I will also do many, many more things in the past, even more than I did in the Seventeenth Epoch. I will search for a way to prevent the future Great Annihilation."

First Master Taishang's expression was peculiar. "When you return to the past, you will indeed do many, many things that no one will understand. At least, I have never understood them. Your reputation will not be very good."

"I'm used to it!"

Qin Mu swayed as he stood up, stretched, and chuckled, "If Seventh Master Chaos could be seen through at a glance, would he even deserve the title 'Chaos'?"

First Master Taishang stood up and said, "You said I tried to learn from Teacher, but I never could, even trying to perish and dissolve into the Dao like Teacher, I made a mess of it. I suppose I never despaired for the future like Teacher did. I didn't know where this hope came from, but now I know, this glimmer of hope must have come from you."

His gaze was profound. "After you return to the past, I will come to the Seventeenth Epoch and dissolve into the Dao, returning the spiritual energy and power I took from the universe back to it. But I won't die; I will reincarnate and wait for you in the Seventeenth Epoch."

Qin Mu nodded.

First Master Taishang looked back at the Obelisk Forest and said, "I will send Taiyi and the Creation Beings back before I dissolve into the Dao. When you return to the Sixteenth Epoch, you will meet them."

Qin Mu paused, then smiled broadly. "Then, Senior Brother, farewell until the future!"

First Master Taishang smiled faintly. "Farewell until the past."